Utility Week

UTILITY WEEK | 19TH - 25TH OCTOBER 2018 | 15 This week Financial support cut for electric vehicles Department for Transport announces change in the rules for the plug-in car grant scheme The government has cut support for purchases of electric vehicles (EVs), while completely axeing subsidies for hybrids, including the iconic Toyota Prius. The Department for Transport announced on 11 October that it is changing the rules for the plug-in car grant (PICG) scheme, which has supported the pur- chase of 160,000 low-emission vehicles since it was set up seven years ago. Purchasers of the lowest-emitting vehicles, classed in category 1, will receive £3,500, which is £1,000 less than they currently get. Category 1 vehicles include all those emitting less than 50g/km CO2 and which can travel at least 112km without any emissions of the greenhouse gas. Models that continue to benefit from this reduced subsidy include the BMW i3 and i3s, Citroen CZero, Jaguar I-Pace, Nissan Leaf, Toyota Mirai and all Teslas. Category 2 and 3 vehicles, which currently are eligible for support of up to £2,500, will no longer qualify. These include the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, Toyota Prius Plug-in and all low-emission vehicles manufactured by Audi, Mini and Volvo. The changes are due to come into effect on 9 Novem- ber. The government has set a limit of 35,000 on the number of vehicles that will enjoy support under the plug-in grant levels until that date. It said it aims to focus support on zero-emission models such as pure electric and hydrogen fuel cell cars and that hybrids will con- tinue to benefit from help via mechanisms such as lower car tax rates and grants for charging infrastructure. DB WATER Funding 'at risk' from nationalisation Nationalising the water industry in England risks losing essential funding for the future and would undo "years of improvements", according to the chief executive of Water UK. Michael Roberts argues that proposals outlined by Labour to renationalise the water sector have not yet included details such as how the environment would be protected and how leakage levels would be reduced. During a debate with Labour's shadow water minister Luke Pollard on 9 October, Roberts said: "Nothing we have heard so far on the proposals for nation- alisation in England give any clue about how the environment would be protected, how water quality would be maintained and improved, how leakage would be cut or how the big challenges of climate change and population growth on the future supply of water would be dealt with. "There is a fundamental risk that nationalising the water industry in England would poten- tially cause far greater problems than any it is supposed to solve." ELECTRICITY Cheap flexibility threatens nuclear Cheap flexibility from storage, demand-side response and distributed generation poses a "huge threat" to the nuclear industry, according to former energy secretary Ed Davey. Speaking at a conference in London on 11 October, Davey said the falling costs of such technologies raise "serious ques- tions" about the government's pursuit of new nuclear plants. "Nukes are expensive; take a hell of a long time to build. In ten years, where are we going to be with storage and flexibility? "I think it's going to be cheap as chips… that has to ask serious questions of the nuclear strategy the government is pursuing." ELECTRICITY Community energy projects will 'stall' Growth in community energy projects will stall due to plans to axe the mechanism that pays small-scale generators for the excess electricity they supply to the grid, the government has been warned. The Solar Trade Association (STA) says more than 300 organi- sations have signed its letter to energy minister Claire Perry urg- ing her to reverse proposals to end the "export tariff " in April. The STA is also lobbying MPs directly in a #Fair4Solar Coalition. It says withdrawing the export tariff will mean small- scale rooop installations will be subsidising big generation firms by providing free electricity. Unplugged: no grant for Toyota Prius Plug-in Finance & Investment Stock watch 45 40 35 30 25 SSE SHARE PRICE, ONE YEAR Feb 2018 Jun 2018 Oct 2018 INNOGY SHARE PRICE, ONE YEAR SSE's share price has remained broadly level following the decision by the Competition and Markets Authority last week to give final approval to the merging of the company's retail business with Npower. There was also little movement in the share price of Npower owner Innogy. 1,500 1,400 1,300 1,200 1,100 1,000 Feb 2018 Jun 2018 Oct 2018 pence euros

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